Fumes
by marmaalade
Summary: The passage of time is an illusion, Sasuke reminds himself. But their clock of illusions is ticking. (Eventual SasuNaru, diverges from canon at the Valley of Death.)
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Naruto.**

* * *

The first time Naruto gets this feeling, he wakes up in a cold sweat. Moonlight is streaming though his curtains, and with hurried steps he moves to pull them and the window shut. But not before gazing at the full moon, its haunting light reflecting off the boy's sparkling blue eyes. He never liked the moon very much; looking at it made him feel alone and lonely, and children his age didn't worry about those things as often as he did. But this time, he feels something…different. It's a pain almost; the moon seems to be drawing him near, enveloping him with whispers and ghostly promises. Almost like its talking, trying to tell him something. Naruto has never been more disturbed than at this moment, and has to remind himself to continue breathing. _(but what if you didn't do that_?) The moon says. _(You could give up. You could stop, it's okay. Everything is okay.)_

He pulls the curtains shut with more force than necessary, returns to his bed, curled almost into a ball and taking deep breaths. He makes a mental note to check the date on the milk in the morning.

* * *

The next time Naruto finds himself overcome with this feeling, he is still holding his new headband proudly. Even after he left Iruka-sensei, the grin hasn't left his face. He should be asleep by now of course, but his prize for besting Mizuki is just too important to him. And then he feels sick to his stomach.

This has happened before, he tells himself, and it should soon pass. But this time shakes him harder than it ever has. It was like a wave of nausea and terror hitting his insides, spreading through his bones and out his toes and fingertips. Naruto grit his teeth as the wave crashed through his body, leaving a dull ache behind. As soon as it leaves he can suddenly breathe again and coughs as air finds its way back into his lungs. Blood runs down his shaking palms where his fingertips once were, but the indents were deeper than his stubby nails should have been able to make.

Naruto waits for the fear to leave, waits for his bravado and courage to come back to him; it doesn't.

 _(maybe it never existed at all maybe you've been faking it lying to everyone you can't even get your headband without help maybe-)_

It's so strange to Naruto to hear a voice that isn't actually speaking, doesn't actually exist, that he emerges from the fear. He's heard this voice before, listened to it berate and insult him, but now he knows it's the fox. For some reason, that doesn't give the words any less of an effect.

* * *

Things, in their own way, have somehow been getting better for Naruto. He has a team now, a pseudo family that through their own faults have managed to keep moving. He has Iruka-sensei, the rest of the Rookies, his pervert sensei Jiraiya, and now he has Granny Tsunade too. She had made dragging her back to the village much harder than it needed to be, he thinks, but if she can help Konoha everything will have been worth it.

She heals Kakashi-sensei, Lee, Sasuke, and Naruto is thankful beyond words (words he won't say aloud). And even though she healed him thoroughly after the fight with Orochimaru and Kabuto, the medic nin insists on checking him out in a real hospital with real medical equipment. Naruto hates the hospital. It seems very large and very small at the same time, and being confined to a room isn't something the blond enjoys. But it only takes a threat from Tsunade to get him to remain seated.

"Are you telling me you've only had 5 proper doctor's visits in your life?" She's been flipping through a small stack of medical papers while he sits uncomfortably on the hospital bed.

"I hate this place, I always ran when Gramps tried to get me to come. I'm glad he stopped trying to force me after a while." Naruto chirps back, swinging his legs and gazing towards the window.

"Well, I'm sure you won't mind catching up on bloodwork while we're here then." The sannin answers, almost too happy to be sticking sharp objects inside of him. She has Shizune do it, not that she's still terrified of blood, but giving herself a little more time to get used to it is fair.

Shizune only takes a couple vials, leaving with them as Naruto is ordered to hop onto the scale. He's a little short for his age, a little underweight, but everything else seems to check out fine. Shizune returns after a few minutes, a troubled look on her face and freshly printed papers in hand.

"Tsunade-sama, it seems mostly normal, but just in case…" She sounds a little nervous, but Tsunade looks over the papers, trusting her student's judgement. Shizune may not work in the field very often, but she's been taught everything the world had to offer on medical practices.

There's a few moments of awkward silence as Tsunade reads, before handing them back to Shizune. "Get me a Hyuuga as soon as one is available. In fact, send for Hiashi. An untrained eye won't help me here."

Naruto is taken aback by how quickly Tsunade turned from her stern, motherly attitude to a contemplative medical professional. "Granny, is everything okay? I'm not dying here, am I?"

"Hopefully not." Is the only answer he receives; she's reflipping through his charts and papers, scanning for something she may have missed the first time. Naruto know she's trying to be strong, but he can feel her uneasiness. "Have you ever had odd spikes of chakra? Not yours, but the fox's. Fear, terror, anxiety, that's the effect that Biju chakra has on a person. Though, maybe if you were younger you didn't understand when it happened…"

Naruto is quiet for a moment, unsure whether Tsunade is asking a rhetorical question or if she wants a response. "Uh, its happened a few times, yeah…" He trails off as she nods, pulling a pen and adding to her initial evaluations.

Shizune returns quickly with an older Hyuuga man, Naruto recognizes him as Hinata's father. His pale eyes flicker to Naruto momentarily, and then to Tsunade.

"You required my assistance, Hokage-sama?" His voice is calm and quiet, but Naruto swears he sounds a little snobbier than necessary.

"Yes, thank you Hiashi. Naruto, stand up, shirt off. And Hiashi, look at his chakra passages, I'm looking for anything out of the ordinary here."

Naruto felt his face burn as he placed his shirt on the table, but stands awkwardly as the older man activated his Byakugan and gazed down at his stomach. There was no change in the Hyuuga's expression, but his eyes traced the pathways through Naruto's body. And then he shuts it off, closing his eyes for a moment and turning back to the Hokage.

"There is subtle damage on the pathways surrounding the hands and feet area, and the damage is a bit harsher around the seal." Hiashi's voice is quitter than before. "You were right to call for me; this type of damage is unusual, and if one doesn't know what they're looking for, I doubt they would have noticed."

Naruto tries to ignore the sudden fear that hits him, gazing at the nervous adults in the room. Tsunade simply nods, scribbling more on her sheets. "Thank you, Hiashi. If you could come back to my office for a moment. And Naruto, you're free to go. You are, surprisingly not dead from years of poor eating and no doctors visits."

She tries to end the conversation on a high note, and Naruto doesn't quite believe her. But for appearances sake he smiles, grabbing his shirt back on and sprinting for the door.

* * *

"Maa, Naruto… please be more careful…" Kakashi-sensei always seemed to show up just in time, even when his students were going at each other's throats. This time, even literally. "And Sasuke… you haven't even officially left the hospital yet."

Sasuke simply breathed heavily, staring at the ground with his hand still in the water tank.

"Sensei…!" Sakura quickly rubbed the tears from her eyes, running towards her teammates and teacher. "Are you both okay?!"

It was still silent between them, until finally Sasuke angrily stood and stormed away from the roof. Calling after him did nothing, it seemed.

"HEY! KEEP IT DOWN UP HERE OR- oh. Of course it's _your_ team!" The roof door slammed open, an angry Tsunade yelling from the doorway. "Naruto, come here right now!"

"Ugh, what now Granny?" Naruto groaned, but looked back at Kakashi with a slight look of shame.

"Go on Naruto, don't keep Hokage-sama waiting." He said it as gently as he could, before nodding at Sakura and heading in the direction of Sasuke. Naruto took off as well, Sakura watching sadly as her team went their separate ways.

* * *

"As soon as I heard the noise complaint I had a feeling it was you."

"Hey! Sasuke started it, he started going crazy!"

"And you attacked back because…?"

Naruto didn't have an answer for that. He knew he shouldn't have fought Sasuke back, even when Sasuke attacked him. His teammate was still hurt, both physically and mentally. Tsunade just sighed, descending the stairs with ease.

"If you could learn a little more restraint with your emotions, maybe getting along with your teammates would be easier."

"Whatever…what did you need anyway, Granny? What are you being so nice for?" He followed her out of the hospital and down the street into the Hokage building; it was the middle of the day and people walked leisurely through the streets, gazing and bowing upon Tsunade in awe. Enough that they ignored Naruto for the time being.

"Just a follow up from yesterday." It was said almost ominously as they climbed the steps, into her office and closing the door behind them.

"Hey, what's this pervert doing here?!"

"Geez, never happy to see me?" Jiraiya sat on the windowsill, faking a wound on his chest. "Kids these days just have no respect."

"Oh shut up Jiraiya." Tsunade seemed to have no time for her fellow Sannin's antics. "Naruto, please sit down."

Naruto gazed at both adults warily, and becomes aware at how old they look right now. Their eyes are haunted, something that not even Tsunade's fancy jutsu has hidden. He has always been good at guessing emotions. "Hey…what's going on here? Am I trouble? Wait…is there a ghost?"

"Of all things to be scared of, its ghosts?" Jiraiya mutters, before shaking his head. "No kid, this is about the fox."

Naruto is immediately unsettled. "What about him...?"

"Naruto, do you know who the jinchuriki of the fox were before you?" Tsunade asks gently. The blond shakes his head, not that either sannin are surprised. "Well, interestingly enough, both before you were women picked from the Uzumaki clan."

Naruto is stunned into silence. "Wait, seriously?! I'm not the only Uzumaki?"

"Only Uzumaki? Kid, there was a whole clan of them at one point. Shame the island was wiped during the Third War, the Uzumaki were geniuses." Jiraiya added.

"Which is why they became such a target. Descendants of the clan are scattered through the ninja nations now, even I am one. My grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, was the first jinchuriki of the 9 Tails and the wife of the 1st Hokage." Tsunade watched Naruto's face turn even more shocked.

"Wow… So who was the second?" Tsunade looked to Jiraiya for this answer.

"Well, her name was Kushina Uzumaki. She was also your mother."

"WHAT?!" Naruto was out of his seat now. "You knew my mom?"

"She was a great ninja in her age. When she died that night, Konoha lost a great woman." Jiraiya added solemnly. "But kid, while we wanted to tell you this, it's not the only reason we're here."

Tsunade pushed a stack of files and papers in Naruto's direction, most of them weathered and dusty. "The Uzumaki clan had a large amount of kekkei genkai, but unlike the Uchiha or the Hyuuga, not every ninja was born with them. You could be born with one, three, or none at all."

"So, for instance, Tsunade over here was born with the stronger life energy common in the Uzumaki. You were born with it too, it keeps you alive during attacks that may otherwise kill you, and you can heal faster as well. Of course, you heal even quicker due to the fox." Jiraiya stood from the window and sat on the desk instead, turning to face Naruto. "Your mom was lucky; she was born with three of them. She could heal fast, and could also make chains out of chakra that could be used as weapons and restraints."

"So…what's the third then?" Naruto was absorbing everything he could about his mother like a sponge. Both the sannin were quiet, eyes cast away from Naruto. "Well…?"

"Naruto, the Uzumaki, very rarely, would be born with extremely durable chakra." Tsunade began. "It could withstand intense strain on their passages, and for the most part, didn't seem as special as the other kekkei genkai. However, the Uzumaki picked to be the jinchuriki had to have this chakra. The 9 tails, as the strongest of the beasts, has incredibly toxic chakra."

"And all of them do, but the fox was the strongest and the worst." Jiraiya added. "The younger the host is when bound to the beast, the more likely it is that they will survive and the chakra will mix safely. That's not the case with the fox though, so picking a host had to be careful."

"Oh… so I got the fast healing and the special chakra stuff?" Naruto asked, still wondering why they felt so upset.

"No, Naruto… you were born with only the fast healing. The Kyuubi still bonded with you, but your chakra passages…" Tsunade didn't finish the sentence.

"They're falling apart. As the fox's chakra mixes with your own, your passages become more and more damaged. And eventually…it will kill you." Jiraiya still couldn't bring himself to meet those familiar blue eyes.

"What…? No way, is this a joke?" He sounded so heartbroken, so in shock, that neither sannin could answer him. "B-but, I wanted to become stronger! I wanted to protect my family…I…I wanted to become Hokage!" Tears and snot were running down his face as he lifted an orange sleeve in an attempt to dry them. Tears streamed down Tsunade's face as well. Soon he would be just like Dan and Nawaki. She didn't sign up for this.

"From the preexisting damage, she's estimating that, at most, you'll have between six and seven years. Three at the least, and 10 at the absolute most." Jiraiya had to keep talking before the boy bolted, he deserved to know everything. "You won't truly feel the damage in your body until about the last year or so, your body's own warning that you won't have much time left. But until then, you'll be able to function like anyone else."

"Naruto, we understand if you don't want to be a ninja after this. You could live your last years out however you like; we would make sure of that. Konoha owes you for what you've given up for them." Tsunade spoke through the tears.

"And if I want to stay a ninja…?" Naruto asked, still muffled by his sleeve.

"Then nothing will change. You'll be given everything we know about the Uzumaki clan and the Kyuubi from passages that Mito wrote, as well as whatever artifacts I can find around here. They're all yours."

It was quiet for a long time. Naruto didn't say anything, still letting the tears roll. And when they finally stopped, he let out a ragged breath. "Okay. Thank you. For telling me all of…" He waved his hands around. "This."

"You would have been taught the history by one of us eventually. And your health, of course we wouldn't keep that from you." Tsunade soothed.

"But you will need to try and keep it a secret." Jiraiya tried not to sound too forceful. "If the other nations, the Akatsuki, or any other madman gets wind of your current state, its gonna paint a huge target on your back. And Konoha's too; whether you asked for it or not, the status of a country's jinchuriki is an important political piece among a country's leaders." He stopped, catching himself before he scared the kid further. "Damn, all that diplomatic bullshit that the old man taught me is sticking more than I thought it did."

"Can I tell my team at least?" Naruto said almost pleadingly; he didn't want to keep secrets between them anymore, not with his time shortened significantly.

"I'll allow it. Go ahead and head home, Naruto. Take a look through the files if you'd like, and tomorrow you'll be training with Jiraiya." Naruto accepted the Hokage's orders, scooped the files in his hands, and headed home with a tear stained face.

* * *

Naruto never got as much reading done as he planned. When the summons came to his door, that Sasuke had abandoned Konoha, abandoned his home, his mood reached an all-time low. And now they stood in the Valley of Death, two opposing and conflicting ideals engaged in a fight that possibly no one would walk away from. They were so different, but so alike. When Naruto saw himself in the Kyuubi cloak, the poisonous mess that had ripped through his body and, he saw a monster. And then Sasuke became a monster too, with poison as equally bad racing through his veins.

He had to bring Sasuke home. If Sasuke joined Orochimaru, he would be throwing his life away. And Naruto had to admit that his reasons were somewhat selfish. He didn't want to spend the remainder of his life trying to get Sasuke back; he wanted to enjoy it alongside him, with Sakura and Kakashi-sensei and the rest of their Konoha family. He didn't want this hazy, monstrous picture of his rain soaked best friend to be the last one he had.

"You're coming home, Sasuke!" Naruto's voice sounded muffled through the chakra as he watched the Uchiha from the other side of the valley. In his hand, he readied the Chidori. Following suit, a Rasengan swirled in Naruto's right hand, tendrils of red streaming into the swirl.

They both charged.

Time seemed to slow, and in the final moments before impact, Naruto didn't falter. He didn't want to hurt Sasuke, didn't want to do any serious damage, but his friend wouldn't be leaving this valley with a snake. So he aimed for the left shoulder, releasing it as he felt the Chidori impact with his chest. He heard Sasuke scream, heard him fall to the ground. The curse mark began to retract, and then the world went black.

* * *

 **Thank you so much for reading! Will be back soon with chapter two.**


	2. Chapter 2

When Naruto came to, no longer was he at the Valley of the End. He was being carried on someone's back through the trees, and the silvery hair he saw out of the corner of his eye must have meant Kakashi. He heard another set of footsteps though, and managed to turn his head and see another Kakashi. A clone, he guessed. But the second one carried Sasuke.

Relief flooded through Naruto's body upon seeing his friend. He had succeeded in enough time to stop him, or at least slowed him down enough for their sensei to arrive.

"Naruto… you're awake?" The Kakashi that carried him asked, and Naruto assumed him to be the real one. His body hurt too much to answer, and instead he 'mm-ed' into Kakashi's back.

"I'm so proud of you Naruto… you deserve a rest. I'll take care of everything else." He had never heard his sensei so sincere. His eyes drooped involuntarily, knowing that even if he wanted to stay awake it wasn't happening. Letting Kakashi bring them back to the village, Naruto allowed himself to slip back out of consciousness.

-0-

The second time he awoke, Naruto found himself in the hospital. His first emotion was immediate distaste towards the sterile smell and white ceiling. And then everything came flooding back: Sasuke leaving, the fight, being found by Kakashi. Instinctively he reached a hand towards his chest, hands meeting clean bandages. He actually brought Sasuke back. He finished his mission.

And then it hit him; it was like the surges he had experienced before, a rush of pain spreading through his chakra passages like a wave. He grit his teeth as it flooded his body and attempted to choke back a scream.

"Naruto, shit hang on…" Naruto felt a pair of hands grip his shoulders and push his writhing body onto the bed. It didn't feel like it helped any, but it was comforting to have someone with him until it subsided. When it finally did and air came back into his lungs, he coughed harshly and managed to open his eyes as the stranger drew away, allowing Naruto to push himself up.

"J-Jiraiya...?" Naruto managed to cough out weakly, and the sannin visibly sighed at Naruto's ability to answer him.

"Tsunade had a feeling you would get another one of those attacks, especially since you used the fox in that fight. She made me wait here just in case." Jiraiya joked, but in all honestly he had willingly offered to keep guard over him.

"I had to… there was no way I was taking down Sasuke and that seal-thingy of his." Naruto let himself fall back against the bed frame, sure that the major pain was over. The room was dimly lit, and the window outside was nothing but blackness. "How long have I been out? Wait, everyone else, are they okay, are-"

"Slow down kid, one question at a time." Jiraiya sat on the end of his bed, trying not to look too amused at Naruto's almost instant recovery. "Kakashi brought you and the other brat back in last night. So, waking up a day later isn't that bad considering the injuries you endured. As for all of your friends, well, they're alive at least."

"But are they okay…?" Naruto asked almost hesitantly, causing Jiraiya to sigh.

"That Hyuuga boy and the Akimichi boy were in bad shape, but Tsunade and the other docs got them out of critical condition. The Guy clone and the Inuzuka were healed pretty quickly, and that Nara boy walked away with only a broken finger. Though, had your new Sand friends not stepped in, this mission could have ended in a bad string of casualties. The Uchiha though… well, he's another story."

"What, no! Is Sasuke okay?"

"A story for another time, I think. You should really be getting some more rest Naruto; I know you're still in a lot of pain." Jiraiya didn't want to rile him up any more than he already was while he was still healing, gaining a groan from the boy.

It was true that his body still hurt, even more so after that last wave. The pain was becoming more constant, Naruto thought. "Fine, promise to tell me tomorrow?"

"Even better; as soon as you wake up, I'll let you see them." Jiraiya assured, causing Naruto to brighten significantly.

"Alright…but first thing." Naruto trailed off with a yawn, allowing his already drooping eyes to close and slip back into unconsciousness.

Jiraiya stayed for a couple more minutes watching the boy sleep, before lazily trailing out of the room. He closed the door quietly and turned to the man that had been waiting outside. "You know… I'm sure he would have liked to talk to you too, Kakashi."

"Hokage-sama's requesting your presence." Kakashi acted like he didn't hear that statement. He sounded aloof as always, but Jiraiya didn't buy it.

"You feel like you failed him. Well, both of them I suppose? All three even." Jiraiya guessed, though it was painfully obvious. "Kakashi, you still have them. So, it looks to me like you didn't fail after all. At the end of the day they're still your students and always will be. Not every ninja gets that privilege, don't take it for granted while you still have it." Jiraiya rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Gah, I don't like being sappy. Anyway, better see what Tsunade wants..."

Kakashi stood silently for a moment. Jiraiya knew better than anyone what it was like to come home with a team destroyed.

"Thank you for the advice, Jiraiya-san. I'll keep that in mind."

-0-

Jiraiya kept his word, and first thing the next morning Naruto was up and hobbling down the hospital hallways as quickly as his body would allow. Both Kiba and Chouji had been placed in the same room once under stable condition, and he as eager to see for himself that his friends were actually okay.

But when Naruto found himself outside of the door, he froze. He had no idea what to say to them, or how to explain how he brought Sasuke back. That wasn't a talk Naruto was ready for today.

"So… you going in or should I tuck you back into bed?" Jiraiya asked amusedly, standing behind Naruto and watching to make sure he didn't fall over on the way there.

"I'm going, just gimme a sec…" Naruto grumbled back. His hand was raised over the door, ready to knock. But then the door opened, and he found himself in front of Ino.

She looked momentarily shocked to see him, but as her eyes traveled over his bandaged body, her look turned more sad than anything. Naruto supposed he wasn't the best view right now. Bandages were wrapped around almost everything, his head, his hands, and he was supporting himself with a crutch in his right hand.

"Uh, heheh, hey Ino! Um, I can come back later if it's not a good time, or, uh…" Naruto managed to stutter out, dropping his hand back to his side. That seemed to break the girl out of her momentary trance. Jiraiya laughed and waved the kid goodbye, taking his leave.

"No, you're fine Naruto. I'm just going on a lunch run for Chouji. But with you here too, ugh I may as well just get enough for everybody." Her face turned sour as she thought about how much money she would be spending.

"Everybody?"

"Yeah, come in here Naruto!" Kiba yelled from inside the room, and Ino stepped aside to let him walk in. Kiba sat in the first bed, a patient Akamaru in his lap. Hinata sat in a chair near his bed, face immediately reddening as Naruto walked in. Shino was slumped against the wall, but nodded at the blond as he hobbled in. Chouji waved at Naruto from the other bed, and Shikamaru was sitting on the edge, attempting to look laid back. But, everyone looked okay. Naruto had never been more relieved in his life.

"Man Naruto, are you okay?" Chouji asked, mirroring Ino's surprise at his apparent injuries. Shino pulled over another chair for him to sit where he could see both Kiba and Chouji.

"Of course I'm okay! I can't be Hokage one day if I let one fight bring me down!" Relief seemed to spread through the room at Naruto's usual cheeriness, but Naruto himself wasn't feeling it. He wouldn't be Hokage one day.

"By that logic, Naruto, anyone could be Hokage." Shikamaru added dryly, watching the blond with a careful eye. Something was off with him, but the Nara couldn't place what. It could just have been the injuries, but his insight felt it was something more.

"Yeah, at this rate I could be the Hokage one day!" Kiba yelled, startling Akamaru in his lap.

"Last I checked they don't let dogs rule countries, Kiba." Naruto retorted. "How…how did your fights go? Jiraiya told me a little bit, but no details or anything."

He sat quietly as Kiba launched into his story first, becoming muted a he had to admit being saved by the Sand Siblings. Shikamaru succeeded due to them as well, walking away with only a broken finger. Chouji took down Jirobo himself, but at great physical cost.

"Lee-san and Neji were successful as well…" Hinata added, looking away from Naruto shyly.

"Next time I do hope to be available for a mission of this caliber." Shino added stiffly, pushing his glasses up with one finger.

"Man… we've come a long way from the academy…" Naruto finally commented.

"Even you, Naruto?" Kiba chided.

"Honestly, Naruto has grown the most out of all of us, I would think." Shikamaru interjected before the smaller boy could retort back. "He took Sasuke down single handedly, has gone up against the missing nin Orochimaru multiple times now, and has attracted the attention of both of the other Sannin. That's impressive for anyone."

Naruto felt his stomach drop. Normally he would be bragging at this point, but Shikamaru's knowing eyes were looking for a confession. "I-I mean, I'm just that great I guess… hey anyway, where is Sasuke?"

The quick subject change was enough to get the others to drop it, but the Nara wouldn't be giving up on his pursuit of knowledge that easily. He would find Naruto later.

"Why would you wanna find that guy?" Kiba asked, obviously disgusted.

"He may be your teammate Naruto, but he is responsible for the conditions of everyone here currently." Shino added, attempting to back up his friend's brash statement.

"Hey, it wasn't all his fault!" Naruto answered back hotly. "Orochimaru bastard has been controlling him!" Flashbacks of the valley, of the spreading cursemark were still fresh in his mind. But, so was the raw hate in Sasuke's eyes. Never had the Uchiha been that cold, that heartless. It stung far more than Naruto would ever admit.

"I dunno, Naruto…" Chouji added gently. "I know he's your friend, and technically isn't himself, but these actions, they were still his own…"

"We-we don't want to see you hurt more, Naruto." Hinata added as well. Naruto was shocked to hear them standing up for him, a sensation that was still largely new to him. He wasn't used to so many people caring about him. But that didn't change how he felt about Sasuke.

"I appreciate you caring, but can you tell me where he is at least? I wanna make sure he's okay. I did sorta shove a Rasengan into his shoulder."

"Better than a Chidori through the chest…" He heard Kiba mutter but paid no mind.

"I'll walk you down there, Naruto." Shikamaru stood and helped the blond up while Naruto muted a groan. "Tell me when Ino gets back with food. It'll be troublesome if she finds me before someone else does."

-0-

The walk through the hospital was relatively quiet. The floor their rooms had been located on were bright and welcoming by a hospital's standards, but the floor where Sasuke resided was different. Shikamaru had assisted him with the stairs, Naruto being too stubborn to use the elevator.

There were very few windows or doors, and it was quite obvious that this floor was meant for criminals, or at least those who were not granted access to the outside world. There were less nurses, little noise, and little natural light. Naruto decided he could live with his hospital room.

Shikamaru stopped near the end of one of the hallways at a closed door. It was impossible to see inside any of the rooms, and each door was only adorned with a small nameplate and number.

"Before you go in…" Shikamaru stopped him, leaning against the wall. "I'm kinda curious. You defeated Sasuke by himself? I heard the report you gave to Jiraiya-san, under the effects of the curse seal Sasuke was monstrous."

Naruto only nodded, not liking where this was going.

"And you were born on October 10th?" Another nod, this time with obvious distaste on Naruto's face.

"You know, you could just say you know and stop being an ass about this." The blond growled.

"Sorry, that's fair." The Nara sighed. "I don't hate you for it, Naruto. You're a good guy, troublesome, but a good guy. I always wondered if Konoha had a jinchuriki or not, it seems all major countries do. Though, if it was deliberately held from us, it may eventually prove safer for the country as less and less people know… Ah well, anyway."

"Naruto?" Both boys turned to a new voice, belonging to Sakura. In one hand she clutched a vase of flowers, and the other had been instinctively clutched over her chest. "Oh thank god, I went by you room but you weren't there, and the others said you were looking for Sasuke and…" She caught herself, watery eyes locked onto her smaller teammate. "Did…did Sasuke do this to you?"

The words were spoken at almost a whisper, and Naruto couldn't find himself to meet her eyes.

"I can't believe he would…well…honestly I can. Naruto… thank you. It was so unfair of me to ask you to do this when I wasn't strong enough myself." Tears were running down Sakura's face now.

Shikamaru began to back away, not wanting to get involved before this situation became too troublesome.

"Don't say that, Sakura!" Naruto answered back angrily. "He's my teammate too, I would have gone no matter what anyone said!"

"Guys, how about we don't yell in the hospital." Both genin jumped at the sound of their sensei's voice. Kakashi was good at sneaking up on them, and he took pride in their constant shock. "We've been at hospitals a lot lately, hm…"

"Are you here to see Sasuke too?" Sakura asked, wiping the tears away from her eyes.

"Well yes. And we should probably stop standing out in front of this door, we're starting to look suspicious."

Sakura and Naruto steeled themselves, and as did Kakashi. Everyone knew their reunion with the Uchiha wasn't going to be pretty, but it needed to be done, for their sakes and his. He opened the door and walked inside, surprised to find all lights in the room were off. His hands found the light switch, and his voice caught in his throat upon seeing his student.

Kakashi had found himself on the 7th floor of the hospital many times in his ninja career. Prisoners of war, criminals, and ninja under suspicion were found on this floor, in rooms of solitude and surrounded by hiding guards. And while his time as an ANBU operative had led him to put individuals here, and on the off occasion even himself, it was not a view he ever dreamed of finding his student in.

The Uchiha was sitting up, eyes cast away from the door. His wrists had been restrained to the bed, and his arms still bore the ink from the chakra binds that had been placed throughout his body. Bandages were wrapped around his torso, slightly visible under the hospital gown. Seeing Sasuke in this position was haunting.

"S-Sasuke?" Sakura asked shakily as she walked inside, followed by Naruto who shut the door behind him. Kakashi gave his students the two chairs in the room which they moved carefully towards the bed, unsure of a safe distance.

"Hey…Sasuke…" Naruto attempted, still gaining no response. They sat in silence for a few more moments, but the blond was getting uneasy and impatient. "You can hear me, just answer me already would ya-"

"Shut _up_." Sasuke whipped his head towards Naruto, pure hatred burning in his eyes. "What do you want from me? You took my freedom, my hope for revenge, what do you want?!" His voice became gradually louder with every word, arms attempting to pull away from the bed restraints.

"That's enough, Sasuke." Kakashi spoke harshly, causing the Uchiha to return to his stiff position. "Your actions alone led you to this point, but it's not too late to fix that." He gazed at his other students, both bearing looks of shock and fear.

"There's no point. I wish they would just kill me at this point."

"Sasuke, no…" Sakura whispered, vase of flowers held tightly in her lap.

Kakashi sighed, finally seating himself carefully at the foot of the hospital bed. "Let's not talk like that. We need to talk about where we're moving forward from here, and what will happen with our team." Kakashi looked more tired than any of his genin had ever seen him, but he continued.

"As of now, Team Seven is disbanded. But think of it as more of hiatus, I suppose." Their sensei mused. "The Hokage believes I am more valuable elsewhere for the time being, and will be reassigning you to new mentors. Sakura!" He looked at the girl gently, giving her one of his signature eye smiles. "From now on, you will be added as an additional member of Team 9 under the tutelage of Might Guy. With them you will attend the next Chuunin exam, so they'll be working to get you into shape."

Sakura had never been more horrified than in that moment. Guy and his team were a strange bunch, with strenuous regimens and disturbing fashion choices. But they were strong, and she needed to catch up to the other genin more than ever now. She nodded back at her sensei, accepting what would be a terrifying next few months.

"Sasuke. For the time being, you will be removed from active duty. The Hokage has decided to grant you a pass, despite your actions the past few days. A vote will be held for show, but the real decisions had been made the moment your return had been secured."

"So what, they take my headband and leave me to die?" Sasuke asked harshly, spitting out his words.

"Not quite. You will be put into a temporary home with a medical professional where you will be under constant watch. They will be in charge of monitoring your mental health and stability until you are in a sound state of mind. In all honestly, this should have been done after Itachi's actions years ago. You owe much to the village now, but The Hokage believes it owes you as well."

Sasuke had no idea how to feel. He had been alone for so long, dedicated all of his time to becoming stronger. And now he had neither.

"And, Naruto. For the next three years, you will be leaving Konoha under the tutelage of Jiraiya."

Naruto was stunned. "Wait, but I just got Sasuke back! He can't take me, its…it's not fair! That's three whole years!"

"And when those three years are up, Team 7 will be a team again. Jiraiya is incredibly strong Naruto, this will be a running start towards becoming Hokage. You're very lucky, many ninja would pay to receive the training you are."

Naruto's stomach dropped. Kakashi didn't know. He knew he had to tell Sakura and Sasuke, but had been hoping Tsunade let Kakashi know. He attempted to steel himself for the hardest conversation in his life.

"Kakashi-sense…" He finally managed to speak again, blue eyes cast away from his team. "I, um, I need to tell everyone something."

"If this is about the fox I think that's already fucking obvious." Sasuke spat, obviously done with Naruto. The blond flinched.

"The-the fox?" Sakura asked hesitantly, gaining a sigh from Kakashi.

"Um, Sakura, you remember Gaara? And the Ichibii, and how he was a jin…jinch…um."

"Jinchuriki." Kakashi said patiently.

"Yeah, that. Well, I sorta kinda have the 9 tailed fox inside of me? Like Gaara, but like not like Gaara because the seal is safe and um…"

Sakura's eyes had gone wide, gears spinning inside of her head. The girl wasn't stupid by any means, and almost immediately pieced together small details about Naruto that she had overlooked. The stares, the general negativity, the strength when he needed it most. October 10th.

"Naruto is not the fox, Sakura. His seal was done by The 4th Hokage himself, and Naruto has worked hard to keep it at bay since his birth."

"I…" She turned to Naruto, who looked like a puppy bracing itself to be kicked. "O-okay. You're still Naruto. You're still our idiot, I don't want that to change…not now."

Naruto's expression turned grateful for a moment, but returned to it's downtrodden expression. "Thank you…but that isn't everything. When we brought Granny back to the village, she gave me a bunch of stuff about the Uzumaki clan. Both of the Kyuubi's hosts before me have been Uzumaki clan members, which is pretty neat. But really, they did it because the Kyuubi would kill anyone else."

Kakashi was now listening carefully. Kushina had been the wife of his sensei and an important figure in his life. Losing her that night was a tragedy.

"Does the Kyuubi hate everyone but the Uzumaki clan?" Sakura asked, unsure of where this was going.

"Well, not really. He sorta hates everyone." Naruto continued. "But the Kyuubi's chakra is toxic, and the Uzumaki clan has a bloodline that keeps the chakra from effecting them."

"If I remember the reports correctly, you were chosen by chance Naruto, and not because of the bloodline." Kakashi questioned, not wanting to reveal what his student may not know.

"Yeah…so I, I don't have the bloodline. That protects me from the chakra. Its…Its killing me. Granny says I've probably got another six or seven years… four or five if I'm unlucky, or if I'm lucky maybe ten. But I…yeah…"

Naruto didn't hide the tears running down his face at this point. Sakura had raised a hand to her mouth in horror, and Kakashi had become rigid. Sasuke said nothing.

"I'm sorry. Granny says it has to stay a secret, since it makes me an easy target. So, it can't leave this room."

Kakashi stood, straight as a board with none of his usual leisure. He excused himself and exited the room almost immediately, hands shaking slightly and pain in his visible eye. Naruto stood as well, wiping the tears from his eyes. "I guess this is goodbye then…for now. But I'll write, and when I get back we can be a team again…okay?"

It was silent for a moment, and Naruto saw this as his cue to leave. He turned for the door, but not before hearing Sasuke's final statement.

"Never thought I would admit to being jealous of you, idiot."

-0-

 **thanks everybody! hope to be back soon with chapter three.**


End file.
